Some delicious men’s match-ups were set up, and some heavy hitters were dismissed on the women’s side on Wednesday at the combined ATP/WTA event in Madrid.
ADHEREL
No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal and No. 13-seeded John Isner set up a Thursday meeting, the Spaniard beating Ukrainian qualifier Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr. in straights, and Isner coming back to beat Colombian qualifier Santiago Giraldo 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-2.

In upsets Nicolas Almagro ousted No. 4 Robin Soderling in straights, Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez advanced when No. 7 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retired after a set with a back injury, and the hot-handed Ernests Gulbis topped No. 10 Mikhail Youzhny in straights.

No. 15 Stan Wawrinka won to set up an all-Swiss meeting with world No. 1 Roger Federer, and (8) Marin Cilic will face (9) David Ferrer.

Former No. 1 Serena Williams’ troubles continued when she blew a one-set lead to Nadia Petrova, losing in three to the Russian in a clay cloud of 41 errors, then afterwards ripped the tournament.

“I wasn’t moving my fastest but all I could do was try and do the best I could. I don’t know. I definitely wasn’t at my best,” Williams said, going on to criticize the tournament for its scheduling. “This isn’t a player-favorite tournament, just to be honest. None of the players are really gung-ho about playing here.”

Yowch.

The elder Williams sister Venus avoided an upset, coming from a set down to defeat Italy’s wily Francesca Schiavone. No. 7-seeded Jelena Jankovic won a battle of former No. 1s in a match where no love was lost, beating fellow Serb Ana Ivanovic 6-1 in the third.

I’d like to hear a little more context on the Serena quote, because that can sometimes make a world of difference, but yeah, it doesn’t sound too complimentary in the sound-bite given. One thing you cannot fault Serena for? Speaking her mind.

Well, I don’t mind Serena speaking HER mind, but I don’t think she should be speaking for others, even if it’s true. She seems to be careless with words these days, or maybe I’m just now paying attention. I love Serena and her tennis, but I’d like to see her put a lid on it.

A lot of things were annoying Nadal yesterday, but he looks focused today. He has been getting a lot of Isner’s serves in play, but doesn’t have a break to show for it yet. Isner is trying to be more aggressive on Nadal’s 2nd serve.

Rafa’s trying to end points quickly when he can. He’s come in whenever the opportunity has presented itself, and also sometimes as a surprise.

Conty, I agree: John is still a work in progress, but he’s showing some decent sliding/movement on clay and using a good dropper from time to time (he could use them even more perhaps). He looks a little lethargic between points though.

Ezorra: count me in your moron gang!
conty: I just love our Botticelli Angel, not as much as Andy of course, he is my TRUE love but watching ernie certainly gives me a thrill, so to speak, …on Bluebetry hill tum ti tum….like Youzny very much too, his backhand is alchemy.
jane: off topic, am old Labout through and through union activist, CND, pro Welfare State etc etc and I am deeply troubled by Tories, perhaps the Lib Dems will exert moderation on them, who knows? However hated Teflon Tony and New Labour too!
Rsutherland: as we don’t know how old anyone here is, perhaps Lion is indeed still in High School.
Back on topic and Rafa v. Isner..

Isner looked (droopy eyes) like he was on the coming-down-side of some serious weed – played like it too, IMO.

Outside of Monfils (if he wins) and his cirque du soleil-like antics, it looks like the “Nadal” side of the draw is far more destined for ‘ennui-dom’ than the other half.
Here’s hoping for a Murray/Ferrer and Gulbis/Federer quarter…

Contador – at least you address that particular obsessive compulsive habit in some other way than the usual (and I use the word ‘usual’ with the most plebeian implications imaginable) fashion.

Margot – Lion Could be in High School I suppose, though it was in vogue in my Elementary School to add ‘tard’ to various insundry nouns. We grew out of that one in Middle School. You are being generous.

conty: racquet chucking is good! At least it shows he minds when he plays terrible tennis. Do not mind most bad habits, indifference is far worse.
Do u have ulteror motive for wanting Andy to beat Ferrer?
Shame about Roddick but at least it’s not an injury and I expect his eyes are very firmly fixed on Queens and Wimbledon. SO many players injured and still so early on.

Lion could definitely be in the young and impressionable stage of his life. Maybe he picked it up from Rahm Emmanuel when he referred to congressman as “effing retarded”, but then again he didn’t include the curse word at the beginning so maybe that’s a bad theory.

i usually have ulterior motives or wishes by this point in a big tourny. you know me too well. but my hopes for andy gaining his confidence back are sincere. it’s sad watching him play and hearing his interviews since the AO. yes, i want the old, young muzza back. winning today and going on to beat the ferrer or cilic would give him back his swagger, don’t you think?

my “ulterior” motive, is no secret, i’m sure. an “armada block” and possibly producing a better final is my hope. so, may the best man in the top half other than f-lo or ferrer, win. sure, nadal will win the final, the way he is playing but a more competitive final than the one in MC and rome would be nice. that’s all. i’ve said this before- rafa has not had a competitive match with a compatriot since AO 09, verdasco.

allez monfils. and gets to play rafa next.

yeah roddick is not keen on playing in the dirt. he has his eyes on greens.

LOL. great. isner looked just so, Rs.

the “plebeians.” must admit looked that one up, Rsutherland, not that i hadn’t heard the word, i did forget what it meant. i guess i am rather common and somewhat obsessive when watching where hands go from this place to that. and notice where body fluids fly. it’s my job. life can use few “monk’s” and “howie mandel’s.” if for nothing else to laugh at us.

I’m watching margot – Murray with the break- woot! He’s not serving his best (i.e., first %) but he is winning a number of second serve points, which is good. I think he should get through in straights…

but i am cheering murray. i would love to see murray and gulbis go at it. i admit i don’t like watching murray/fed though. but i can’t see fed getting past wawa, realistically.

muzz is going to win here. he’s moving well, returning better and better, and has that backhand with his tennis pedigree written all over it. he’s a top player and has to remember he likes being there.

Contador, on the subject of losing your typing skills, I don’t want to worry you, but…
Terry Pratchett, diagnosed with early-onset Alzheiner’s, has said that the first clue he had of something being wrong, was having trouble at the computer keyboard. I have the same problem myself, but that’s straightforward senility! Not that I ever could type properly.

NELTA, that’s not what I was implying, not sure if you’re being facetious or not? I merely meant, they must’ve celebrated their run to the finals & Sam’s victory on clay. Both seem a little sluggish at this event anyhow. Could be that altitude switch too though.

Is Angel on? Tennis tv not showing if he is. Pah!
jane: conty’s remark makes me remember, do you recall I had problems with “lock”? Dear “I am it” had a good laugh over that one! Well, have discovered UK version is “shoo in.” Don’t ask me why!

No I don’t suppose Ernie is ever a lock or shoe in (yup I remember the “lock” discussion margot – we have “shoe in” here too). But I am switching to that match. Ferrer has broken Cilic already in the second and may be on his way to another.

Holy crow, now Fed and Wawa are on too. Too many matches!

Well, NELTA, at least the Quisners woke up for the second set and didn’t get routed. : )

Murray probably played well today as I m feeling after seeing the happy and enthusiastic posts of dear Mrs.Margot and Mrs.Jane. Cheers for Muzza!!! :) The best thing to happen since US09 would be Muzza making some sound in Madrid and RG and finally getting a GS in 2010. Sendin Muzza positive vibes and good wishes.

Hi Huh, Murray played very well: good service, great movement, backhand, excellent focus and returning. Hoping he continues to do well here, at the FO, etc. Think Fed should beat Stan here but Wawa is good on clay too.

Eric, I have always liked Gulbis, but he dropped off the map last year with so many early losses, seemed kind of hopeless. It’s great to cheer him on, though, as he such an exciting and talented player to watch. He won his first title this year, got to his first Masters semifinal, beat Fed on the way. He gives very blunt interviews a la Safin. What’s not to like? I guess there is the lack of discipline and dedication in the past, but he seems to be taking winning matches more seriously now.

Plus I suspect that contador -the number 1 Gulbis fan here- ignited the interests of many with her enthusiasm.

Eric – ‘what’s with all the love for Gulbis suddenly? Just curious…’
I would like to venture a few guesses here:

1) The kid plays some great entertaining tennis

2) He shows a lot of off-the-court personality

3) The other oft-discussed, up and coming threats to the Federer/Nadal duopoly are currently falling a bit short; between illnesses, injuries and just not playing their best recently though we hope that is temporary.

Wow – F-Lo collapsed in the tiebreak. KUDOS to Gulbis!! A rematch with Fed it is. I think Fed may get his revenge here, as it’s not his first match on clay this time; he seems much more match grooved. Anyhow, hope it’s a good QF.

Ernie is definitely a character out there. He reminds me of the Djoker sometimes. Late in the 2nd set Ernie shanked a backhand and the crowd cheered. He put his hand and racquet up and started doing a mock applause.

Anyway, I predict revenge-seeking Federer delivers a thumping, but it will be an interesting match for sure.

RF’s semi is sure to be much more challenging than Nadal’s but I think we are on track to seeing a Rafa-Fed final. Ferrer was absolutely on fire today dismantling Cilic but Federer seems to be back on form, so the smart money is surely on him. (And of course Murray could give Ferrer and Federer some trouble but I don’t see that as likely.)

i was confused until googled. you got me with the “plebeian” (sp) thang.

you were saying i wasn’t one. thank-you. tho i have been known (in the past ) for bad behavior and guilty of using “tard” when tennis bickering with some rafa fans but i quit; and have no desire to get into any of it.

the only time i am tempted now to jump in is if roger needs medical defending about mono and so on…he deserves respect in that regard just like rafa: meaning believabilty about illness and injury. not an “excuse” meant to take away from another’s win, just saying. it’s all very silly.

very happy for MUZZA! WOOOT. Did he actually serve a breadstick to victor. now we are talking. I am guessing the real Muzza is finally here? The real Mizza can beat ferrer..c’mooooon. You can do it. 59% first serve? did I see that right…Muzza is baaaaack!

The fed looks good too, right? another breadstick..love it, love it.

Gulbis still going strong. Conty we have the federer vs gulbis tomorrow. Fed must play better this time, right? I hope. Too bad gulbis has to play federer again so soon…ok, can’t complain, that must means he is doing well. Gulbis is now LOCK for FO seeding.

Tobasco got all messed up after that first set. Apparently he has a problem with his foot. I hope it is not the same foot that was giving him trouble last year..oh well. Like what somebody said above..i think jane..that he has time to rest some more for the FO.

Hmmm…..good point, Kimo. Still, those three players are all of a bit higher level and more consistent than Gulbis, who is nevertheless apparently playing quite well at the moment. So we’ll see. It will be an interesting match.

I don’t sympathize with Serena Williams when she complains about the tournament. If she doesn’t like it then don’t play, she is one of the few fortunate to play tennis for a living, a good living too. If she had won the match and the tournament i’m sure she would be all smiles and saying how she just loves to play the Madrid and to shop there.

About Nole, let him rest well. There will be time… At least, I enjoyed his closeness. Many impressions but I won’t bother people with it. Sorry to see there were some nasty quarrels while away. A good broom would do just fine here.

Hey, don’t be fooled with your Omega guy face. Not an angel at all! Likes women to much for an angel, ha ha ha! He’s great, I told you. Inconsistency is what bothers him. A hard task for him against Fed. Lets see what happens, but don’t be disappointed if he fails. Still time for him, your seducing angel. He’ll break your heart finally, but I’m not sure if it’s gonna be because of tennis… :-)

Verdasco quotes after his match with melzer (apart from injury looks like the old verdasco was on today..too bad)

“Obviously I didn’t feel very well or very comfortable at any point in the match; even when I was ahead in the first set. I think he deserved to win more than I did; he played better than I did. Playing in my own city and not playing well is really disappointing. Losing at home and at a Masters 1000 hurts more than it did to lose in the final in Kuala Lumpur. Right now I’m pretty disappointed.”

Fernando said that his ankle was injured in his opening match against Karlovic, which was part of the reason he chose not to play doubles. “Today I played with the right ankle bandaged, and in the first set I got a blister on the tendon by the bandage, but the ankle was not the reason for the defeat.”

“if everything goes well, I will go to Nice to pick up some pace ahead of Paris. It is an area that is difficult to see because it is between the tendons of the right ankle. It is a nuisance I would rather not have, but if the doctors say its nothing serious, I will be able to go into Paris positively and believe that I can reach one hundred percent there.”

would love to hear your “impressions.” not a bother at all. you are the expert on nole and recently got to see him play in the serbian open, right?

nevermind the nasty quarrels. blow it off, okay? there will always be cat and dog fights.

“omega face” haha, i remember you calling gulbis that. i absolutely know he’s a safin when it comes to partying and women. i think it was madmax during a rome match, was thinking azarenka was his gf. erno wouln’t have just one. someone else replied, “his girfriend for rome” LOL…..just what one would expect of EG. he a ladies man. that is not why i like him at all,

he will only break my heart if he starts treating his natural tennis talent as a “hobby” again too soon. and Duro, i imagine that could happen at any moment. he doesn’t need to do anything in life. why work so hard? i’m glad he has decided to put some effort in. while he is in tennis as a “job” and to win, i will watch as many of his matches as possible. i completely believe him when he says his goal is to make it into top ten, maybe win one slam and retire. i would be shocked if he did otherwise.

for now, his interviews are completely unrehearsed and charming. he has nothing to lose.we’ll see. recently when he sets a goal, he makes it happen. he wanted to be seeded at FO. perfect.

i don’t expect him to be anything like federer or nadal. he’s say he wants to be like them or anyone.

nole, in my mind could be #1, as could murray and delpo, if delpo ever gets his right wrist back to 100%. those are still the three aside from nadal to reach #1. i don’t think roddick or davy are interested in #1. another slam for roddick would do. davy is in it for the money. haha

was reading the comments during matches here and missed yours. it wasn’t a snub. i have written plenty on gulbis. my post to duro above explains a lot, and i would add, i liked his tennis, his serve, the powerful groundstrokes, his ease in front of a big crowd, laughing with roddick although he lost to andy, he was impressive and that was the first time i noticed him, us open 2008.

thought we lost him to his life of luxury last year. but i always watched for him in the qualies, nearly gave up when i noticed how out of shape he was last summer. but he’s taking his huge talent seriously, more fun than ever to watch and today against f-lo, ernie was returning serves which were NOT returnable!

I missed all live matches but i have to give a shout out to la monf. nice to see him to the qtr in his first tournament back..just watched the highlights..he did some great shots too. I hope we get a good match against rafa tomorrow.

No gulbis interview on tennistv conty :(. just saw federer, murray, nadal and a lot others but not gulbis :(((

I rarely if ever pull for Serena, but I admire her incredible tenacity and ability to win under pressure. I like the fact she’s educated, unlike, among others, that popular American bubblehead Capriati.

It’s racist to group the Williams sisters as a single entity, by the way. Other than the skin color, they have very different personalities. Venus is incredibly surly in post-match interviews, but other than that, she’s had no negative incidents like Serena.

And why in the world should they forget about what happened at Indian Wells? That crowd absolutely, positively was racist as it booed Serena from start to finish in the final after the default in the semis. You don’t forget something like that.

The funny thing is Americans will hold a lifetime grudge against a relative for not coming to their wedding but then say they can’t understand how blacks could still be sensitive about their ancestors being brought over as slaves, then, after they were freed, being subjected to official, institutionalized racism all the way until the 1960s. Some things are unforgivable, and the crowd reaction to the Williams sisters at Indian Wells clearly reached that level with them. Serena didn’t do anything wrong, yet everyone booed her in nasty fashion for hours the next day. That would never, ever have happened to a white American player.

Sorry to everyone else about getting on my soap box. This is a forum to discuss tennis, not political issues, but I couldn’t let the intense hatred for the Williams sisters expressed by Guy pass without comment.

nope i have tried everywhere. the only gulbis interview was tuesday. i’m sure he was interviewed. you’d think there would at least be a transcript somewhere. would be fun to hear what he had to say about that 2nd set shootout. f-lo was serving to kill! but he couldn’t match ernie’s returning. gulbis got ALL the tiebreaker points! i could barely breathe, then was laughing with relief as ernie played straight up awsome, Kimmi.

i had two livestreams and kept an eye on federer’s match but mostly watched f-lo, you could see he wanted to win that grudge match so bad. wawa and fed were not as emotional, of course.

ernie was shaking his head but there was not the self talk on court like during his youhzy match. maybe he was being ‘discreet’ for the spanish crowd? i dunno. : ( interview please? somtimes something pops up on youtube. seems like there used to be more post match interview vids available on atp or the official sites.

if only i had been courtside!

verdasco played awful, you would not have enjoyed it. credit to melzer for the win.

i don’t see melzer preventing an almagro v nadal semi. almagro bludgeoned pico today. i’d like to think he’ll bring his best out for the semi but it kinda looks like practice sessions for rafa the next two matches.

won’t be watching any matches tomorrow. hope you can. and i seriously don’t care who wins in federer v gulbis. i just hope no one gets hurt! lol…. save yourself for the FO, if you need to feddy! let ernie knock himself out.

i would be completely confused watching. i want fed to make it to the final but the best of the two tomorrow will be fine. federer find some of his fine tennis today from what i saw.

but, i hope muzza wins his match and after watching him today, he has a good chance tomorrow, i think. he’s playing pressure-free it seems. get ready to run andy!

go muzza.

i picked ferrer to get to the final with rafa. but on the road there my bracket collapsed. 20 points off the leaders! for rome it took all of 5 minutes to pick and i did twice as good. this time i thought i knew the top 100 better and took all day deciding.

la monf made it but he’ll need to bring a whole lot more game than i saw today for his next match. few to none can beat rafa in his present form.

I am afraid the old verdasco is still there..he manage to get rid of him in his last 3 tournaments but today he was alive and kicking. We could excuse the injury but he said himself that things just didn’t work today. Hope he can regroup for the FO.

I hope Muzza plays his best tennis tomorrow, he will need it. Muzza’s best can definetly beat ferrer. this is fast clay too, i have hope.

Not too far from you on bracket challenge conty..the retirements really messed up things..i have ferrer to the semi..losing to federer but I hope muzza mess up my bracket and beat ferrer..Go Muzza.

just watched some highlight real on gulbis/lopez..great dropshots from gulbis..lopez had his own too..was a great match.

I know we are talking out of the order of the topic but I had to write in support of your comments. I never saw the Williams sisters as nothing but tennis players. And Serena, love her or hate her as that, SHOULD be judged by that or have an opinion like the fans did of McEnroes days, not because of anything else.

Despite how talented Johnny Mac was, most people, including in America, did not like him. Same with a young Connors and “didn’t mind what age” Nastase.

Regarding Serena’s behavior, it it but a grain in the sand compared to MceEnroes antics in his day. Like I said a lot of people didn’t like him either.

In the end, IMO Serena shouldn’t care, with things that happened to them like IW what would you do? I know what I would do and keep entering tourneys and MY leisure, know that I am the most feared woman player alive, and keep winning those GS titles. She will ultimately be remembered for those, there is no Asterisk.

Remember the year she came in to AO? The commentators would not stop about her being out of shape, over weight, etc. You know what? Maybe she was. What happened? GS TITLE.

So maybe the girl does have an attitude and a good reason to have one? So what? Watch her tennis…it’s awesome. Just don’t watch the interviews? lol….

I am done and off the soap box too. It’s a shame with such an “Global Sport” with “Global cultural differences” that does bring all types of people together, but then there a few still that want to go back to “Divide and Conquer”

+1. :) Come on, Duro. I was waiting for your (and Sar’s) “report” from Belgrade and SO. You said that you enjoyed in Nole’s closeness..Sooo, you met him? :)
And I hope he is making cunning plan for RG..I want all flowers to die in Paris before he comes there. ;)

Rafael Nadal said he didn’t like playing Madrid either. In fact he complained about it for weeks leading up to the 2009 tourney and then when he got there complained about the facilities and the clay. Flash forward to 2010, Nadal complained even more about playing Madrid and started to intimate that he would skip it. And he was in such a pissed off mood about playing there he was fussing at the ballgirl models while on court! He complained SO much about Madrid that the ATP is switching the tourney in the schedule with Rome. Is he classless as well? No, they are just players expressing their opinions.